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Pursuing an academic career

This page is aimed at early career researchers who are keen to follow the academic career route by carrying out further research positions and/or eventually becoming a lecturer. Understanding your motivations and how to develop further in this area may therefore be your main focus. The Researcher Development Framework, developed by Vitae‌, is a useful tool which details the attributes required to be an effective researcher and has been designed as an inspirational guide to personal development to help you make the most of your strengths. You may also find the Bristol academic career pathways and role profiles a useful resource in helping you to understand the different academic roles within the University. It is useful to have a look at these to see what skills and experience you need to acquire in order to progress. These will be similar to those that you will need whichever university you move to next and the jobs.ac.uk guide to moving up the academic career ladder (PDF, 427kB) will provide you with a useful overview, tips, and tested techniques for making yourself promotion-ready.

This is also the time to consider the realities of an academic career and if it really is the right route for you. Manchester University has developed an excellent online resource 'is an academic career for you?' which will help you to explore the realities of an academic career, help you decide whether such a career is for you, offer ideas to help you make it as an academic and also suggest alternatives.

The following sections offer you some useful questions to ask yourself and activities you can do to help you consider your next steps.‌